Schwan's Company promotes Brian Schiegg to CEO

Schiegg previously served as COO of Ocean Spray.

Brian Schiegg, CEO. Courtesy of Schwan's

Schwan's Company announced today that Brian Schiegg has been promoted to serve as the company's chief executive officer. He succeeds CEO Dimitrios Smyrnios, who recently announced his retirement after more than a decade of leadership. Schiegg steps into the CEO role following a thorough transition and having most recently served as president of the company's Consumer Brands business.

"Brian has the full support and confidence of the company's board of directors and CJ Foods' leadership to maintain Schwan's momentum and propel our company to even greater heights in the future," says Minsok Pak, chairman of Schwan's Company's board of directors and CEO of Schwan's parent company, CJ Foods. "The North American market is critical to our growth strategy, and I personally look forward to working with Brian to achieve our vision of becoming the No. 1 provider of ethnic cuisine in the United States."

Schiegg is the seventh CEO in Schwan's 72-year history. He joined the company in January 2021 and has been serving as president of Schwan's Consumer Brands, a business unit that markets and sells foods from brands such as Red Baron, Freschetta and Tony's pizza, Mrs. Smith'sand Edwardsdesserts, and Pagodaand bibigo Asian-style foods.

During his time with Schwan's Consumer Brands, the division has achieved outstanding growth, per the brand, with bibigo Asian-style foods and Red Baron pizza holding No. 1 market share positions for their respective categories.

Prior to joining Schwan's, Schiegg accumulated more than two decades of leadership experience in the consumer and packaged goods industry. He previously served as chief operating officer of Ocean Spray Cranberries. He also spent many years in leadership roles for subsidiaries and departments of Mars, Inc. At Mars, he gained a broad range of experience, including in areas such as general management, business transformation, supply chain leadership, procurement, manufacturing, product development, and brand building.

Schiegg earned a bachelor's degree in economics and English from St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN, and a master's degree in business administration from the University of Southern California.

"I am honored to be chosen as our new CEO. Schwan's is an extremely strong company with an amazing heritage, and we have built an extraordinary team of very talented people. Together, we will work to build upon our position as a leader in the North American market and continue to pursue our plans for long-term growth," Schiegg says.

Liz Parker Kuhn is the senior editor of Candy Industry and Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery, and has worked at BNP Media since 2012. She has written for CBS Detroit as well as for her own blogs. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Michigan. Liz can be contacted at (248) 839-7156 or at parkere@bnpmedia.com.

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